Your organization is more likely to hire a Vendor for your IT needs while you focus on your core competencies. Today, the key question facing SMEs is whether they should hire an Individual Software Vendor or a Software company. The greatest advantage you can get from hiring an Individual Software Vendor is that of complete attention to your project. If you hire a veteran Individual Software Vendor with the right expertise, you can be sure that your project will receive the professional’s full attention. Unlike with a Software Company, where a Development team works on so many projects at a time, an Individual Software Vendor usually works on just 1 or 2 projects at a time. This ensures that quality is not compromised. You can stay in personal touch with an Individual Software Vendor and provide feedback on the parts of the project already accomplished, which the Vendor can immediately act upon. While there is a certain element of uncertainty involved with an Individual Software Vendor, most of them are more than willing to work late nights, so that the project is completed on schedule. Finally, the payment terms of an Individual Software Vendor are more than reasonable compared to a Software Company. An Individual Software Vendor also turns out to be cost-effective compared to a Software Company. One of the main advantages of hiring a Software company is that you can take advantage of the numerous skilled professionals employed by that company. With a programming company you can assign multiple projects to the company and expect to get them completed within a reasonable period of time. While you may not be able to communicate with each individual working on your project, you may be assigned an Account manager whose primary job is to understand your requirements & communicate them to the Development team. A Software company can quickly replace a team member who has resigned from the company, thereby ensuring that your project is delivered on time. Therefore, hiring a Software company protects you from turnover risk. Pros and Cons of hiring an Individual Software Vendor Vs. Software Company:
| S.no | Factor | Individual Software Vendor | Software Company |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pricing | Low – Individual Software Vendor works from their home and therefore has low overhead costs. | High – The Software company needs to pay salaries to employees, maintain infrastructure, pay utility bills, etc. |
| 2 | Location Independence | High - Individual Software Vendors mostly work from home. | Low - Software Companies have a physical location. |
| 3 | Skill sets | Focused. | Wide range depending on organization. |
| 4 | Communication risk | Low to Medium – easier to communicate with an Individual Software Vendor. | Medium – difficult for a team of diverse skill sets to speak in one voice. |
| 5 | Global Reach | High - Usually have Clients who are located anywhere in the world. | Medium - Usually have Clients who are close enough to drive to their location. |
| 6 | Online presence | High – Online presence helps them in Global reach. | Medium - Online presence is part of the marketing plan. |
| 7 | Delivery risk | High – may be difficult at times to get an Individual Software Vendor, particularly an offshore one, to stick to deadlines. | Low – A Software Company will be able to quickly replace a Programmer without much impact on your project. |
| 8 | Face to Face contact | Low – mostly work virtually. | High – A Software Company always meets its clients. |
Let's look at the policy of large companies towards Individual Software Vendors Vs. Software companies. Intel, for example, says it primarily collaborates with Software companies & Individual Software Vendors, alike. Therefore, we can understand that the right Skill Sets & timeliness are more important than other factors when hiring an Individual Software Vendor or a Software company.
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